Cells,
tissues, organs, organisms and ecologic niches are systems
of components whose interactions have been defined and refined
by evolution.The turn of the
21st century has been marked by a resurgence of interest in
achieving a systems-level understanding of biology. Systems
Biology seeks answers to the following key questions by integrating
experimental and computational approaches: (1) What are the
basic structures and properties of biological networks? (2)
How do biological systems behave over time under various conditions?
(3) How does a biological system maintain its robustness and
stability? (4) How can we modify or construct biological systems
to achieve desired properties?

Answers to these questions
require breakthroughs in fields as varied as biology, chemistry,
computer science, engineering, mathematics and others, together
with an evolution of our social and educational structures
so that members of different disciplines can effectively bridge
traditional, cultural, linguistic, conceptual, and experimental
boundaries. The International Conference on Systems Biology
is the premiere annual meeting for everyone interested in pursuing
these goals.